


Together (That's How We Belong)

by rhyaenv



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alpha Keith (Voltron), Alpha Shiro (Voltron), Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Beta Hunk (Voltron), Beta Pidge | Katie Holt, Declarations Of Love, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Love Confessions, M/M, Not Beta Read, Omega Lance (Voltron), One Shot, Pre-Relationship, Season/Series 06, Tag Suggestions Welcome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-09-29 13:32:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17204288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhyaenv/pseuds/rhyaenv
Summary: Keith’s abrupt return takes Lance completely by surprise, as do the unanticipated, yet very noticeable changes in the alpha’s appearance. Yet while the omega is secretly overjoyed to finally see the alpha again, when Keith is within his reach, Lance’s nerves get the best of him, and an accidental blunder will forever change the course of their lives.





	Together (That's How We Belong)

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr Prompt: _"Omega Lance internally freaking about Alpha Keith coming back from the space whale, but it turns out that he's been actually saying his internal monologue out loud right in front of Keith."_
> 
> There will be quite a bit of re-cap from “The Colony” (S6E4), but I did make a few changes to some of the dialogue before everything diverges from canon. I also couldn’t recall how long Keith was gone before he returned in the episode, so, I just went ahead and said it was a few weeks, lol. But if any of you guys know for sure, please let me know in the comments and I’ll make that change asap! (Also, I’m sorry for the terrible summary and title. orz)
> 
> Lastly—I know this might not exactly fit your prompt, Anon, but I really hope you'll still like this! And, Anon, thank you for sending me your prompt before I left Tumblr, I was quite happy to see you requested a Keith/Lance A/B/O ficlet. ♥ I also hope everyone else reading this will also enjoy it—if you do, please consider leaving me a comment down below, because reading your lovely comments is what motivates me to continue writing! ♥

Not a whole minute had passed since Lotor and Allura entered the quintessence field when a loud alarm began to blare inside the bridge. The shrill sound had been so abrupt, catching all of them completely off guard, that they all winced at hearing it, but Hunk was the first to speak. 

“What is that?” the beta asked as he turned to his right to look at the screen just as Coran did. Seeing as Pidge was standing less than a foot to Coran’s left, she also turned to fix her gaze down at the screen.

“I’ve got an incoming craft,” was Coran’s puzzled, yet also worried announcement as he continued to look down at the screen with a wary look on his face. 

“Shields up,” Shiro instructed as he turned and narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the screen that was a few feet away from where he stood. “And, Coran, please pull it up on screen.”

Yet as soon as Coran complied with the alpha’s request, the shock on Coran’s face alarmed Lance. He looked haunted, distressed, as if his eyes had laid sight on something shockingly impossible, on something he couldn’t believe to be real. “That… No, that can’t be…” Yet before anyone could dare ask Coran anything, the Altean quickly added, “It— It’s an Altean pod! A really old one, at that, but clearly one nonetheless.” 

“What’s it doin’ all the way out here?” Lance finally jumped in to ask, feeling just as confused as everyone else appeared. 

“Let’s find out.” Shiro’s stern voice rose a touch as he gave a command to the pilot inside the pod, “Attention, Altean pod, identify yourself.” 

To Lance’s absolute surprise, when the screen flipped before their eyes, instead of seeing some long-lost Altean piloting the pod, or some other being who might’ve discovered the pod somewhere and taken it as theirs, it was _Keith_. The alpha was wearing his Blade of Marmora outfit, and while the omega instantly noticed that there was something quite different about the alpha’s appearance, Lance could just feel it in his very bones—this was still _their_ Keith.

Seeing as the omega hadn’t seen, much less been physically in the presence of, the alpha for a few weeks now, the mere sight of the alpha on screen set Lance’s heart into a tizzy, leaving the omega feeling weak, light-headed, and rather like he was, embarrassingly enough, on the verge of fainting. 

“Shiro,” the younger alpha spoke, “it’s Keith.” 

For nearly three seconds, a heavy silence engulfed the bridge as everyone digested the fact that Keith was the one behind the wheel of the Altean pod. Lance found himself quite speechless as his brain continued to process the mere fact that Keith was just outside the Castle. 

Distantly, the omega heard Shiro address Keith, heard Pidge and Coran say something to the young alpha. Rather, all Lance could focus on was the sight of Keith on the large screen above. His face looked slightly thinner, and his hair a fraction longer. While there was a familiar stormy glint to his grey eyes, the worried lines across his face, and the dark circles under his eyes, that Lance had seen persistently on Keith’s face before were gone. And there was something else Lance took notice of straightaway.

“Does Keith look bigger to you guys?” the words tumbled out of his mouth in a quiet rush, a part of Lance desperate to know if he was the only one seeing the noticeable change in Keith’s appearance, or to hear confirmation that the difference was obvious to everyone’s eyes as well. “I mean…really, he’s bigger…” Unable to pull his gaze away from the alpha on the screen, Lance let out a breathless, “Right…?” 

While Hunk and Pidge gave a transient glance at Lance before directing their stares back up towards the screen, no one else turned to look at the omega, much less answer his questions. 

Instead, the alpha onscreen urgently asked them, “Where’s Lotor?”

“He’s in the quintessence field,” Hunk replied after a beat.

Keith’s face fell and the next words that slipped pasted his lips were voiced in an almost horrified whisper, “Oh, no.”

“Why?” Shiro dared to ask, his brows pulling together in concern. “Keith, what’s going on?” 

The younger alpha shut his eyes for a bit and let out a sigh. “I’ll explain everything once I’m inside. There’s a lot you guys need to hear.” 

“Alright.” Shiro nodded his head. “Coran, lower the shields and let Keith inside the ship.” 

From there, it was all a blur to the omega as they left the bridge and made their way down to the shuttle bay. As they stood there waiting, Lance tried to ignore the thundering, overwrought pulsing of his heart, the way he felt so nervous he was nearly breathless, and the faint tremors that wracked his body and forced the omega to stand as still as he possibly could so no one would notice just how badly his hands were trembling in anxiety. 

The omega tried to assure himself that he’d be okay, that he’d be able to act normally once he saw Keith in person, yet the moment Lance saw the pod approach them and then land, he felt his heart clench and his stomach roil in such a way that, for a split second, Lance worried he was going to be sick. Thankfully, he was able to control his body from doing anything horrifyingly embarrassing before everyone by biting the back of his lower lip and focusing on the pain, on the bitter taste of iron that soon filled his mouth. 

“Keith,” Shiro was the first to speak as soon as Keith exited the pod, and the relief and joy the older alpha felt at seeing the younger alpha was evident in his voice, “it’s so good to see you.” 

In the blink of an eye, before Lance was even truly aware of it, the omega came to see that he’d begun to approach Keith. As soon as he caught himself, Lance gave a nervous swallow as he forced himself to stop and fix a suspicious expression on his face. “Hold on there. How do we know you’re the _real_ Keith and not his long-lost,” the following words were out before Lance could hold them back in, “bigger, cooler, grizzled older brother?” 

The second Lance realized exactly what he’d said, he bit the inside of his lip yet again and prayed no one had payed any attention to his words, and if they did, he wondered if he could blame his lapse of judgment on a moment of temporary insanity. 

_Honestly though, I’m absolutely sure this is our Keith, and not a mysterious older brother of his, or a twin, or even some sort of doppelgänger from an alternate universe._ Lance paused his train of thought with a minute frown. _Well, uh, maybe I can’t exactly disprove that last one, but, I mean, what’re the odds of that actually happening? But then again…looking at Keith right now, he definitely looks different—older, more mature, like he’s aged a few years since we last saw him, which also seems virtually impossible, given that we last saw him a few weeks ago, but when comparing the two possibilities, I guess this one’s not as impossible?_

 _I mean, the changes are minor, but there._ The omega allowed himself a few seconds to closely observe the alpha. _His voice sounds virtually the same, if not a tinge deeper. And while his face looks just as it did the last time we saw him, the biggest change in his appearance is actually his body. I used to have a few inches on Keith, but now, I’m pretty sure he’s just as tall as me, if not a bit taller. Which, uh,_ Lance felt a touch of heat suffuse his cheeks, _I didn’t think I’d find as attractive as I apparently do._

 _Plus, it’s also impossible not to notice how he’s just a bit more muscular than he was before. Man, I’m almost tempted to reach out and grab his arm just to feel the flex of muscles underneath his suit. And, his scent, oh God…_ Lance inhaled deeply and let himself drown in Keith’s potent scent, _it was already intoxicating before, but now, I can tell it’s only gotten a touch richer, muskier._ The omega paused to let out a quivering breath of air. _Man—who the hell am I kidding, I’m just glad Keith’s finally back again, I missed him and his gloriously annoying, yet endearing mullet so damn—_

“Lance!” The sharp, familiar voice yelling out his name startled Lance and pulled the omega out of his thoughts. 

Momentarily dazed, Lance blinked several times in quick succession and brought himself back to awareness. Yet the moment he fully came back to his senses, Lance immediately took notice of two things. 

One—he could hear distant, muffled laughter coming from somewhere behind him, and if his ears were in fact not lying to him, the laughter belonged none other than to Pidge. Even after realizing that, however, Lance couldn’t even begin to wonder, much less question, why she was laughing, much less why she was attempting, and apparently failing, to suppress it. 

And the sole reason why the omega didn’t even bother to question Pidge’s behavior was because the second thing Lance became aware of was that Keith was standing less than a meter away from him, the alpha’s darkened eyes wide in clear surprise as they started unmistakably back at Lance, and, most shockingly of all, was how Keith’s face was tinged with a rather alarmingly shade of red. 

As Lance’s brain finally began to process Keith’s unusual reaction and Pidge’s stifled laughter behind him, Lance quickly averted his gaze from Keith. Both because the alpha’s unwavering gaze was starting to unnerve him and because his brain demanded he look around for more clues to explain exactly what the hell was going on. 

It was then that Lance took notice of the strange people standing a distance behind Keith, near the Altean pod the alpha had been flying. The first was a rather tall Galra, and, oddly enough, she was watching at him with a kind, yet also seemingly knowing smile on her face. And, if the omega’s eyes weren’t deceiving him, the second person was an Altean. Strangely enough, she too was also looking at Lance, but until the Galra, the Altean was staring at him with wide eyes while one of her hands was positioned to cover her mouth. But most unexpected of all, was that between the two new people was a creature that looked quite reminiscent to some type of dog, or wolf. Lance had no idea what the creature was exactly, but there was no denying how adorable and beautiful the creature looked. 

“Uh, guys…” After taking one last glance at Keith, noticing that while the alpha’s face was still flushed a bright red, Keith was pointedly _not_ gazing back at him anymore and was instead staring off into the distance somewhere to his left, Lance finally turned around to face everyone else. “I’m not the only one seeing those—” Yet whatever the omega was about to inquire about was quickly cut off as he took in the unusual sight before his eyes. 

Shiro had fixed his gaze up towards the ceiling, and while he was very pointedly trying to look in Lance’s direct, the omega swore the alpha was trying to fight back a smile. Coran, on the other had, while also clearly averting his gaze, still managed to look mortified, as if he’d trespassed and witnessed something he shouldn’t have. Unsurprisingly, Pidge, while not looking directly at Lance, was clutching her stomach while bitting her lip, clearly trying to stifle more laughter. And lastly, there was Hunk—the beta was the only one looking directly at Lance, and the moment they made eye contact, Hunk managed to give the omega a familiar wobbly, nervous smile that instantly made red flags go up in Lance’s mind. 

There was a brief lull in Lance’s mind as his brain pulled all the information he’d gathered together and presented him with a logical conclusion. Then, as everything finally came and clicked together in Lance’s conscious mind, the lull vanished and was instantaneously replaced with an overwhelming surge of dread and embarrassment that swelled with his chest and left him feeling rather faint. 

“Oh my God,” Lance gasped out. “I didn’t— Did I really just—” The words seemed to be lodged firmly in the back of the omega’s throat, unable, and perhaps also unwilling, to come out. 

“If you’re going to ask if you really did just publicly declare how Keith’s new, more mature, grizzled appearance basically bewitched you and nearly made you swoon right before all our eyes,” Pidge announced as she regarded the omega with a curious, yet amused gleam in her eye that made Lance’s gut roil as a sense of foreboding washed over him, “then yes, you really did just do that.” 

For a few seconds, Lance merely stood there, his wide eyes gawking at Pidge as his blood went cold in horror. A heavy, stifling silence filled the shuttle bay before Lance weakly cleared his throat and pushed himself to stand up straight as he attempted to try and speak again, “Well, alright then. I guess I’ve got no other choice now. If you guys need me, I’m just gonna go and head on upstairs and then proceed to launch myself right out into space. It was nice knowing all of you!” 

With a short wave of his hand, Lance turned and began to make his way towards the elevator. Yet before Lance took more than four steps toward his target, a gentle hand gripped his left shoulder, forcing the omega to come to a completely halt. 

“Lance…” Shiro’s voice began, but before Lance even turned to face the older alpha, a low growl pierced the air, making the older alpha stop speaking and immediately pull his hand back as Lance’s body stilled in alarm. 

The growl only lasted for a few seconds before it was abruptly cut short by a loud, shocked gasp. “Shiro—” Hearing Keith’s panicked voice, Lance’s body immediately turned to look back at the younger alpha, and he was appalled to see Keith look so unsure, baffled, and embarrassed before not only his eyes, but everyone else. “I’m so sorry, I don’t know what—”

But Shiro gently stopped the younger alpha from saying anything further as he spoke in a soft, yet unwavering voice. “Keith, it’s okay.” Then, the older alpha turned to look at Coran and firmly ask, “Coran, please lead everyone to the bridge. Let’s give Lance and Keith a few moments alone here to talk privately, okay?” 

“Of course!” was Coran’s quick reply as he jumped into action. “Everyone, please follow me!” And, surprisingly, though everyone seemed to almost hesitate for a moment, without another word, they started walking towards Coran as soon at the Altean slowly began making his way towards the elevator. Shiro, however, stayed back. 

“But, Shiro…” Keith protested weakly as he watched everyone walk away, “I need to talk to you all about Lotor. He’s been lying to all of us!” 

“And you will,” Shiro easily replied, his voice calm as he gave Keith reassuring smile, “but Lotor is with Allura right now, and they only just left us a while ago. They likely won’t be back anytime soon. So, for now, I really think the two of you should talk. We’ll all be waiting patiently for you both upstairs, so please take your time, okay?” 

Keith seemed to hesitate before responding with a faint, “Okay.”

“Lance?” When Shiro turned his attention towards Lance, the omega swallowed and nodded his head. 

“Good. Then,” Shiro offered the two a warm smile, “we’ll see you two in a while. Good luck.” With those final, parting words, the older alpha turned and walked away, and in a few seconds, the doors to the elevator sealed shut, leaving Keith and Lance alone in the now painfully silent hangar. 

Unable to ignore the quickening of his frantic heart, the gradual constricting of his lungs leaving him feeling short of breath, Lance could sense a wave of panic trying to take hold of him, and, fearful of what the alpha might first say in response to his horrendously mortifying blunder, the omega promptly said that first thing that came to mind.

“I’m sorry!” Lance blurted out, startling the alpha. “I swear I didn’t mean to say all those things about you in front of everyone like that!” As Lance looked down to stare at his hands as he wrung them anxiously, he added in a softer voice, “It’s rare, but sometimes, when I get really nervous, I have a terrible habit of accidentally voicing out my thoughts. I didn’t think it was going to happen today, but, well…apparently it did, and I’m so sorry for embarrassing you like that right in front of—”

“Did you really mean them though?” Keith abruptly asked, making Lance freeze and go quiet. “The, uh— The things you said about me, I mean.” 

Part of Lance still wanted nothing more than to deny the question, to claim he’d briefly lost his mind, that that’d been why he’d spouted out all that nonsense about Keith, in some futile effort to protect himself and salvage whatever dignity he had left. The other part of Lance, however, took notice of how tense Keith appeared, how even as he’d voiced his question, he’d kept his gaze firmly down at the ground beneath their feet.

The sight of Keith looking so apprehensive and downcast pulled at all of Lance’s heartstrings, and he could feel that inner ache inside of him that made him want to do and say whatever was necessary to make the alpha feel better. In this case, the omega figured, it likely meant telling Keith the truth, even if it cost him his own heart. 

Taking in a small breath of air as he steeled himself for what he was about to do, Lance mentally prayed and asked that Keith wouldn’t hate him after what he was about to confess. 

“I did.” 

The admission was barely more than a murmur, but seeing as Keith briskly looked up to gaze at him, Lance knew the alpha had heard him. 

“Oh,” was what Keith chose to say in response, and the single word shattered Lance’s throbbing heart. 

“Yeah, well…” Lance swallowed past the lump in his throat and tried not to wince when he heard how strangled his voice sounded as he continued speaking, “I think it’d be best if we can just agree to forget what I said and pretend like nothing hap—”

“What if I don’t want to?” 

The sudden question completely caught the omega off guard, making him look back up at the alpha’s solemn face. “Uh— What?” 

“I don’t want to forget or ignore what you said,” Keith stated firmly. 

“Wh— Why not?” Lance questioned after a beat, feeling completely baffled. 

“Because…” The alpha’s features shifted as he paused momentarily, possibly feeling conflicted as he considered his next words, before he continued. “Because knowing that you find me attractive makes me feel…proud, and, because…” the next words were a light whisper, “I missed you too.”

There was a pause as Lance processed Keith’s words. Once he realized what exactly the alpha had just admitted, disbelief flooded his mind. “You…did?” 

When Keith only nodded, the omega felt the need to ask—to know, to be sure. “But, you— You never acted like you did. Ever since you went to join the Blade of Marmora, each time you came back, each time we merely saw or heard back from you through a screen, you’d just give me a simple greeting along with everyone else, and…that was it. Keith, compared to everyone else, I feel like while we are definitely teammates, and acquaintances, we’re barely friends. We don’t train alone together, hang out, or talk about things outside of our missions, or Voltron. So you missing me? I just…” Lance hung his head, “Keith, I’m sorry, but…I’m kinda really surprised to hear it.” 

Though Lance had attempted to remain composed as he spoke, halfway through his voice had broken to a wavering mess, betraying his true feelings on the matter and revealing just how hurt he truly felt. 

“I felt like I had to,” Keith replied quietly, with downcast eyes, “if I’d acted any other way, you and everyone else might’ve seen and figured out the truth, and I just…couldn’t have that. I didn’t want anyone to know, so I continued to act like such a…jerk towards you. But even then,” at that point the alpha gazed back up at Lance, his expression incredibly pained, “Lance, I’m so sorry I hurt you.” 

Out of everything Lance expected to hear, an apology was not it.

Despite everything they’d discuss thus far in their rather brief conversation (oddly enough, Lance realized, this was still one of the longest conversations they’d ever had between just the two of them), Lance had no idea what truth Keith was referring to. Curiosity piqued, the omega wanted to ask the alpha was truth he’d been trying to hide from him and everyone else, but taking into account how unsteady he was already feeling, Lance instead chose to push the matter to the back of his mind. 

“It’s okay,” Lance breathed out as he averted his gaze. And the omega meant it, just a single, sincere apology from Keith, and Lance knew he couldn’t hold or blame the alpha for what’d he done, for how he’d acted, even if his actions and words had hurt Lance back then. Keith was genuinely sorry, and Lance’s heart was weak for the alpha—of course he’d quickly forgive him. 

“I feel like it really isn’t,” Keith admitted with a sigh, “but— I still don’t think right now is the best time for this, but given the situation we’re in, seeing how Shiro basically sent everyone away so we can talk, and taking into account what might happen later on, if I don’t do this now, might not get another chance in the future, so…” to Lance’s horror, the alpha got down so that he was kneeling on the floor, his head tilted up to meet the omega’s gaze as Lance stared back down at him with wide, disbelieving eyes, “Lance, if you’d be willing to giving me another chance, I’d like to try and make it up to you from here on out.”

“W-What?” Feeling like his heart was on the verge of jumping right out of his chest, Lance brought both of his hands up to clutch the front of his shirt in a fruitless effort to calm himself down, and so he wouldn’t reach out and pull the alpha up so that he was standing once more. “Keith! What are you—”

“Lance,” the alpha paused for a second to let out a wavering exhale, “if you’d allow me to, I’d like to court you.” 

“Court— What? But you—” Lance blinked and shook his head, feeling incredibly unsure if he was merely hearing things, or if Keith had actually said the words the omega thought he did. “Wait, does this mean— Are you saying that you, uh… _like_ …me?”

“Of course.” For a moment, Keith’s brows furrowed, and an unsure, apprehensive expression clouded his face. “I, uh— I thought that was kinda obvious?” 

“Obvious?” Lance blinked and quickly thought back to their earlier words. “Wait, then the ‘truth’ you were talking about, you were referring to…your…” Lance struggled to get the next words out, “feelings for me?”

There was an earnest, yet slightly nervous look on Keith’s face as he stared up at Lance and replied in a hushed, but steady murmur, “Yes.”

“Keith…just…” unable to see the alpha kneeling on the floor, Lance at last allowed himself to reach up and place his hands on Keith’s shoulders to gently pull him up, “please, get up.”

As soon as Keith was standing, Lance let go and took a few steps back. 

“Lance, honestly, this is all new to me,” Keith began in a rush, “liking someone like this, I mean. Before you, before we even found the Blue Lion back on Earth, I’d never had crush on anyone, even when I was younger, much less anything more. Then I met you, and, at first,” the alpha let out a strained breath of air that sounded somewhat like a short laugh, “I didn’t like you all that much, you were just…too much, and you seemed to dislike me from the get-go. 

“But then I started to really pay attention and notice how hard you’d work yourself during our trainings, how you’d even train alone at times when everyone else was either asleep or relaxing, how much effort you actually put into the things you had to do. How you’d joke around to lighten the mood when things were getting tough, or tense. How you always did your best to cheer people up when they seemed to be down—me included—even at your own expense. 

“I started to see just how thoughtful you really were, how kind, how you’re by far the best marksman on the team, and, uh,” the alpha’s cheeks reddened even more then, “how…beautiful you are.” At hearing that final compliment, Lance felt his face grow unbearably warm. “I swear, I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve become jealous over you flirting with someone when we’d go out on missions, or when you flirted with…” he looked away then, “Allura.”

Keith looked down then, to stare mindlessly at his hands. “I didn’t even realize I was starting to like you like that until you got hurt that time when Pidge wanted to leave to find her brother. My heart felt like it’d stopped when I saw that you were just lying there on the floor, motionless. Honestly, I nearly growled at Shiro when he rushed towards you and picked you up. Thankfully, I was able to stop myself in time, but I ended up feeling so envious of Shiro, and so upset that _he_ was the one holding you, that I couldn’t stand to be in the same room as him. 

“It wasn’t until much later, when I was finally able to hold you in my arms, that I finally managed to calm myself back down. I was just so surprised—Shiro’s like family to me, and I trust him with my life, but back then, especially since you were hurt and unconscious, I hated the fact that I left you with him. Logically, I knew Shiro could and would protect you, but I just couldn’t stand the fact that he’d be by your side, and not…me. After that, well, I started to like you more and more until I eventually realized the feelings I had for you were more than just some fleeting crush.” 

By the end of his speech, Keith’s cheeks were still brightly flushed, but he gave the omega a bashful smile before adding in a quieter voice, “Honestly, I’m not that good with words most of the time, with expressing myself, but…I really hope I’m getting my point across right now, because—Lance, I really like you, and I’d be honored, and beyond happy, if you could give me the chance to court you.”

“Oh.” Now Lance found himself floundering, though his heart was fluttering madly in joy, it seemed almost like his mind was still shock, too surprised to hear the extent of Keith’s feelings and realize his own feelings for the alpha were actually requited and not unrequited as he believed them to be all this time, and if left him unsure of what to or say next as his mind struggled to process everything the alpha had said.

“So…” Keith cleared his throat, and when Lance fixed his gaze on the alpha’s face, his heart broke at the uncertainty and apprehension he could see written on it, “is that a…yes, or a no?” 

“I…” Feeling a familiar burning in his eyes, Lance quickly reached up and dabbed at his eyes to try and brush the tears he knew were about to fall. “Only if I get to court you too,” the omega replied after a beat, “I know some alphas don’t like the idea of a mutual courting, but my parents did that before they got together, so I grew up wanting that too.”

“A mutual courting is perfectly fine with me.” Keith walked up to Lance, right until there was less than a foot of space separating their bodies, and the omega’s heart his heart give another fluttering, joyful throb at seeing such a striking, genuine smile on the alpha’s face. “Knowing us and how competitive we are, well, I’m pretty sure we’ll be keeping everyone rather entertained with our courting efforts.” 

The omega let out a faint chuckle at that, “Yeah, you’re right.” 

“I know right now’s not a good time for it, given that I’m pretty sure everyone’s probably watching us up there through one of the cameras in here,” Lance felt his face pale at that, “but later, when we’re able to get some alone time, if you’d allow me, I’d really like to kiss you.”

“Oh…” the omega was pleasantly astonished to find that his face could grow even hotter than before, “uh, I— I’d really like that too.” 

Unfortunately, at that moment the alpha chose to take a few steps back. “For now, I really think we should join everyone in the bridge. They’re probably going stir-crazy over there, and dying to know what happened between us.” 

Realization struck Lance, and the omega was unable to hold back the groan that slipped past his lips. “Oh my God, they’re going to give us hell when we get back up. I don’t think I’m ready to be interrogated by everyone.”

“Oh, uh, before we go up to the bridge, there’s something I’d like to tell you,” Keith began, looking rather anxious, “before I tell everyone else, I mean.”

Lance’s brows furrowed in concern. “What it is?” 

“Well, uh—” The alpha attempted to give the omega a small smile. “My mom’s up there too.”

“Your mom?” Lance nearly yelled out as panic flooded his mind. He thought of the Galra he’d spotted behind Keith earlier, how he’d sworn she’d looked slightly familiar, despite the fact that Lance knew he’d never seen her before. Now, it all made sense, the reason why she’d looked even remotely familiar was because she was Keith’s mom. The fact that Keith was actually half Galra didn’t even register in Lance’s mind, all the omega worried about was the fact that he was going to meet Keith’s _mother_ when they returned to the bridge, and right after they’d agreed to a mutual courting. “I— Keith! We just got together! I’m not ready to meet your mom! What if she hates me? What if she doesn’t approve of me? Of us? What if—” 

“Lance, please don’t worry about that,” the alpha gently cut in as he walked up the omega again and placed a comforting hand on Lance’s shoulder for a few seconds before pulling it back. “While I was away, I kinda told my mom all about you.” Keith took a moment then to offer the omega a small, sheepish grin. “She actually told me that if I liked you so much, I should just gather up all my courage and tell you, before it was too late and someone else came and stole your heart away.” 

“Oh,” was the only breathless sound that managed to escape past Lance’s lips. 

“There’s also a lot more you guys need to know,” the corners of Keith’s lips were pulled down into a slight frown, “mainly about Lotor, I mean, but that’s not really my story to tell.” 

The thought of Allura being somewhere they couldn’t go, all alone with Lotor, made Lance’s gut roil in dread. “Well—then, despite how I’d rather not face everyone again right after everything that just happened right now, we should leave and make our way back up there.” 

“Trust me, I’m nervous about seeing everyone up there too, but,” Keith closed the distance between them yet again, but this time, to Lance’s astonishment, the alpha reached out and slowly slipped his right hand into Lance’s left hand, “we’ll be facing them together, right?”

“Yeah…” Lance gasped out faintly as an overwhelmingly blissful feeling surged inside his chest. His racing heart gave one last flutter before melting as he became aware of the comforting warmth coming from Keith’s hand around his. 

“Now, come on, let’s go join everyone else up on the bridge,” Keith gave the omega’s hand a gentle squeeze, “I have a feeling we’ve kept them waiting for far too long at this point.” 

Lance tightened his grip on Keith’s hand fractionally in a small effort to ground and calm himself. Though there was still an undercurrent of unease present inside of Lance, knowing that Keith would be right by his side as they faced everyone and told them the truth kept the unease at bay, and a small surge of strength and confidence gradually took hold of him. 

“Yeah,” Lance shared one last look at Keith’s face and gave the alpha a small, but radiant smile, “you’re right, let’s go.”

A comfortable silence surrounded the two as they made their way to the elevator, but once the two were inside and the doors slide shut in front to them, Keith quietly cleared his throat before asking with a small, but obviously pleased smirk on his face, “Before we arrive, I just want to verify something,” Lance turned to look quizzically at the alpha, “after all this time, you don’t actually hate my mullet, do you?” 

The omega felt his jaw drop. 

“What was it you said before?” Keith drew his brows together in thoughtful consideration before his features softened and he was then starting at the omega with a playful grin on his face and a hint of mischief gleaming in his eyes. “That you missed me and my ‘gloriously annoying, yet endearing mullet’?” 

“What?” Feeling his cheeks color, Lance swiftly turned to avoid the alpha’s gaze. “No! I’m pretty sure I never said anything like that. Sorry, Keith, but, are you sure _you_ weren’t just imagining me say that?”

But as the alpha’s laughter filled the silence in the elevator, Lance was unable to stop himself from smiling as a pleasant warmth filled his chest and his heart swelled with pride and elation. 

_Mom, Dad, I wish I could tell you,_ Lance thought to himself as he gave a fleeting glance down at their still entwined hands and then at Keith’s profile, _I finally believe—dreams_ can _come true._

**Author's Note:**

> Given everything that happened prior to December 17th on Tumblr, while I did decide not to delete my Tumblr account (and, amazingly, Tumblr didn't up and delete it either), I won't be active on there anymore. Should any of you all want to contact me, please feel free to check out [my profile page here on AO3](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhyaenv/profile) for a list of places you can find me (though, honestly, the best place to contact me at this time is [Twitter](https://twitter.com/rhyaenv)). ✿
> 
> And, lastly—Happy New Year, everyone! May you all have a lovely January, and may 2019 bring you peace and unbridled happiness! ♥♥♥


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